A black, heavy figure lay curled up on a thin mattress in a shabby hospital room, her breaths slow, her sighs frequent. The ceiling above was cracked and stained, but Mei Lin's gaze remained fixed on it as if hoping the ceiling would give her answers she had long stopped asking.
She was in a remote village hospital in Country C, far from the glittering world she had once belonged to. A world where she should have been a princess.
Born into one of the wealthiest families in C Country, Mei Lin should have lived a charmed life. Her parents were famous for being the city's most admired couple, with three sons already. They had always wished for a daughter, but after the birth of their youngest son, her mother was told she could no longer bear children.
During a visit to an orphanage as part of their charitable work, they met a bright-eyed four-year-old girl. Without hesitation, they adopted her. That girl was Wei Lin, the eldest daughter of Lin family.
Wei Lin instantly became the center of their world. Everyone adored her; parents, brothers, grandparents. But fate had a twist. When Wei Lin turned six, Madam Lin became miraculously pregnant. This time, she gave birth to another daughter; Mei Lin.
The family rejoiced again. Mei Lin was the only girl born into the family in two generations. She was loved, celebrated, showered with affection. And yet… she never truly felt seen.
From the moment she could understand the world around her, Mei Lin loved Wei Lin. Even when she learned that her sister wasn't biologically related to her, she didn't care. Wei Lin had always looked after her, indulged her, smiled gently when she threw tantrums. She was the perfect sister or so Mei Lin believed.
She didn't know then that the love wasn't mutual.
With Wei Lin's subtle influence, Mei Lin grew rebellious. She started skipping school, lashing out, making trouble. Her grades plummeted. While Wei Lin shone as a model student; admired, graceful, elegant and Mei Lin became known as the school's bully.
Her family didn't stop loving her. They kept hoping she would change. Her brothers scolded her. Her parents pleaded. But Mei Lin, in her stubborn pride, believed they had turned against her.
Despite her poor performance, her father managed to get her into the best university. But it didn't take long before she was expelled for bullying a student so severely that he ended up hospitalized.
That student was Shen Lei.
She had made Shen Lei her favorite target since middle school and to her shock after that accident, her grandfather Old Master Lin had decided to marry her off to him. Shen Lei, was the youngest son of the Lei family. Old Master Lin and Old Master Lei were old acquaintances and considering the status of both the families they thought this marriage would bring good to both their grandchildren.
However, how could Mei Lin accept this. "What kind of joke is this?!" she had screamed at the dinner table. "You want me to marry him? The guy I hate more than anyone?!"
She was grounded. Cut off. Watched like a prisoner.
That's when for some unknown reason she started gaining weight even though barely ate properly. Her appearance changed drastically. One day, Wei Lin visited her in the night behind everyone's back.
First Wei Lin was shocked to see her changed appearance but after looking at her intently she said "Maybe… just maybe, if they see you like this, they'll call it off."
That thought became Mei Lin's only hope.
But the wedding wasn't called off.
She walked down the aisle, unwilling and ashamed. And her photos, now viral across the country, became a laughingstock. "The Ugly Duckling of the Lei Family," the headlines mocked. The mocking shattered her pride over the period of time.
Mei Lin despised Shen Lei. To her, he was the reason she had lost her dignity. But Shen Lei never reacted. He rarely came home. When he did, they barely spoke. He didn't insult her, didn't scold her, didn't even try to win her over.
She hated that silence more than anything.
Her in-laws didn't like her, and she didn't like them. Every interaction was cold. She fought with them constantly until finally, she stopped speaking at all. She isolated herself from everyone her family and her best friend. The only person whom she gave access to her life was Wei Lin, her loving elder sister.
Then, one day, something changed between her and Shen Lei. One awkward, emotionless night turned into something more when she discovered she was pregnant.
She was furious at first. But when Zhou Lei was born, Mei Lin felt something she had never known before; real love. Her son became her whole world.
Her relationship with Shen Lei became civil. They spoke occasionally. Sometimes, he even smiled at her. She poured all her affection into her child, and slowly, she began to change. She wanted to become a better mother. A better person.
For three years, life became bearable.
Then her son died.
And with him, so did she.